


The return

by Mercury_Writer



Series: Hurt Jake Peralta [1]
Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Angst, Bad Parent Roger Peralta, Child Abuse, Gina Linetti & Jake Peralta Friendship, Hurt, Hurt Jake Peralta, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Roger Peralta Bashing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-03-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 16:42:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23160409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mercury_Writer/pseuds/Mercury_Writer
Summary: On Jake's birthday, his mom organises a surprise- it turns out to be the worst surprise he could have imagined- his dad.When Jake's dad was around he was an abusive crap bag, his mom says he has changed, but Roger Peralta is still the same abusive monster he always was.
Relationships: Gina Linetti & Jake Peralta, Jake Peralta & Karen Peralta, Jake Peralta & Roger Peralta, Ray Holt & Jake Peralta
Series: Hurt Jake Peralta [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1783708
Kudos: 277





	The return

**Author's Note:**

> The speech at the start is taken from one of the episodes. 
> 
> Jake's dad left later on than said in the programme because it fit this story better. 
> 
> There is some violence- I tried to keep it as non-graphic as I could.
> 
> This was rushed a bit cos I have so much work on at school so couldn't spend as much time on this as I wanted.

About half-way into the celebration of Jake’s birthday the doorbell rang. 

“Oh, must be your birthday surprise”. Karen Peralta exclaimed. 

“You got me the ’86 Mets? Be warned a lot of them turned out to be drug addicts so this could be a bummer.” Beamed Jake, he felt like a kid again, excited about his birthday- screw being an adult, it was his birthday, so he was legally allowed to act like a child. 

“You ready?” Jake’s mom asked. 

“Hey buddy.” Came the voice of Roger Peralta. Jakes face dropped, his smile vanishing. ‘This couldn’t be happening’, Jake thought. That bastard was supposed to be out of his life. 

“What the hell is he doing here?” Jake questioned, trying to hide his fear. He couldn’t face his dad, not anymore. It took Jake all the strength he had to get over the abuse he faced from his dad. The day he left was the best thing that could have happened to Jake because it meant that he was finally free of that monster. Fathers are supposed to protect their children, supposed to love them- Roger Peralta did the exact opposite. He abused Jake, physically and mentally almost every day until he eventually left after his mom found out about his cheating- another reason why Roger Peralta is evil incarnate, all he did was hurt those he was supposed to love. He never cared about anyone but himself. He hated Jake just because he was born, apparently Jake was the reason for his crumbling marriage, the reason he was failing at his job. According to the senior Peralta, everything wrong in his life was Jake’s fault. It took Jake years to get over what happened, in truth he still hasn’t. He has deep rooted trust issues and constantly goes above and beyond to solve cases because he’s afraid of what might happen if he fails- failure isn’t what people expected of him. This was his so-called father’s fault, he made Jake feel that everything was his fault, pushed him to be perfect and if he wasn’t, he’d beat him. If his dad was angry, he took it out on Jake, if he was frustrated Jake felt that frustration in a mix of verbal abuse and physical abuse. It got far worse towards the end of Roger and Karen’s marriage. As they argued more and their relationship deteriorated Roger Peralta took his anger out on Jake, blaming his- saying that their marriage was fine, and they were happy before Jake came along. 

Jake’s mom never found out. His dad made sure he would never tell anyone, threatening to kill him if she ever found out, and once his dad left, he didn’t see the point, he was gone and couldn’t do anything to hurt him anymore. Gina knew, she saw the bruises on Jake on one of their many afternoons spent together as children. She asked Jake and he broke down, confessing how his dad physically attacks him and the things his dad said to him. Gina was like a sister to Jake, comforting him and helping him whenever he needed it. Without Gina, Jake doesn’t think he would have survived that situation and he will forever be grateful to her for that. She encouraged Jake to tell the police or his mom, but he never did, too afraid of his dad, afraid his mom wouldn’t believe him, and he didn’t want to hurt his mom by breaking them apart- but they ended up splitting up anyway. 

“He’s your father Jake, he should be here to celebrate your birthday. And we’re back together. We’ve been talking for a while and have decided to give things another shot”. Karen explained calmly. 

“B-but why mom, why him?” Jake stammered. 

“I know he hurt us Jake, but that was in the past. He’s different now, he’s changed and we’re happy.” She explained. She had hoped that Jake would have been accepting of the news and would welcome his dad back. She had noticed a change in Jake towards the end of the marriage and after he left, she just thought it was from the constant arguing and because he missed his dad. She had no idea what her son had been through at the hands of that man. 

“He’s a monster. Y-you can’t trust him. N-not after what he did- what he’s like.” Jake tried, his voice pleading for his mom to leaving him- realised she was making a mistake. He couldn’t face his dad not again. Even now his dad terrifies him, the memories of his dad still haunting his, affecting him now. 

“Jake, I know everything your father did, including cheating on me with Sheila Boden. I know what I’m getting myself into with him Jake”. 

“You don’t know everything. You don’t know what he’s like, how evil he is- how much he hurts people. How could you even consider letting him back in our lives?” Shouted Jake. It wasn’t anger though; it was fear. 

“It’s my choice Jacob, my life. I know you think you’re protecting me like I always have done, but he makes me happy- happier than any other man I’ve been with since the divorce.” Karen snapped, thinking that Jake was being unreasonable and childish. 

“Please just trust me and stay away from him.” Pleaded Jake, tears beginning to form in his eyes. This was really happening. The man who made Jake’s life almost unlivable was back. He thought he would be free of him for the rest of his life, guess he was wrong. 

“I’m staying with him Jake and that’s that.”

“Fine,” Jake says as he gets up. “I hope he makes you very happy.” He continued before grabbing his leather jacket and storming out. He knows to his mom that he must seem unreasonable, but he couldn’t bring himself to care, he couldn’t be around him, he had to get away from him. 

“Jake”. Karen shouted after him. 

“I’ll go”. Roger says. He runs after Jake- quickly catching him up. He calls Jakes name, causing Jake to spin around. 

“Get the fuck away from me”. Jake spits out. He goes to turn around and carry on when Roger grabs him. 

“Get off me”. Jake yells as he struggles to get free from Roger’s vice like grip. His dad pushes him against a wall, pinning him there and strengthening the grip on Jake’s arm. In that moment he was a kid again. Jake had fought with more perps than he could count so should have been able to fight back, but he just couldn’t. It was like he was paralyzed with fear. 

“Stay out of mine and your mother’s relationship. She is happy with me so don’t be the selfish brat you are and ruin it for us like you did last time.” Roger barked threateningly. 

“J-just let me go- I’ll leave you alone, just please let me go.” Jake whimpered, tears beginning to fall. 

“If you don’t you know exactly what I can do to you. And if you dare breathe a word of what happened I will kill you? Is that understood?” He threatened. 

“I promise.” Jake whispered, words tumbling out of his lips, barely audible. The senior Peralta shoved Jake to the ground before walking away. Jake stayed there on the cold floor for a while unable to move- the panic gripped him, taking control so he couldn’t do anything, the feeling of Roger’s hand ghosted on his skin, burning into him and his dad words and the memories playing over and over like a broken record. 

Jake never thought this day would come. He thought that the day his dad left was the day he was finally free- that would be the last he would see of him. He wishes more than anything that he had been right. Monster and evil are not strong enough to describe Roger Peralta, he was the worst type of person. An abusive scumbag that who went of his way to make his son’s life hell and to hurt all the people he was supposed to care about. 

Jake didn’t sleep that night, mind racing- not shutting off to let him slowly drift into blissful unconsciousness away from this living nightmare. He arrived at the precinct on time the next day- much to the surprise of everyone seeing as Jake was always late. Throughout morning briefing he was quiet. None of his usual quips and jokes, when asked about a case he kept it to the point and short, with none of his usual excitement. Everyone was concerned at this point. Something was clearly wrong. 

When Charles asked after briefing, he said he was tired, and he didn’t sleep- which wasn’t a lie it just wasn’t the exact reason he was being off. 

“Hey Peralta, you feeling okay?” Amy asked concerned for her friend as they sat down at their desks. 

“Yeah I’m fine, just tired, didn’t sleep much cos I got back late from my mom’s, it was my birthday.” Jake explains, hoping that Amy will believe him and drop the issue. 

“Okay. You worried me there for a second Peralta.”

“Aww Amy, so sweet that you were so worried.” Jake teased, but the lightness of his tone and the smile painted on not quite reaching his eyes. 

“Hey Jakey, can I speak to you in private a sec?” Gina asked about half-way through the day. Jake straight away agreed and followed Gina into the evidence room, where everyone seemed to go when they needed to talk or do anything non work related. 

“Jake, why has your mom been messaging me saying you’ve been ignoring her calls and texts. She seems really worried Jake. Did something happen? I asked her but she wouldn’t tell me anything, just that she needs to speak with you.” Gina explained, worried what might have happened. Gina grew up with Jake and had been witness to all the fights and misunderstandings he and his mom had, no matter how pissed off Jake was he always got back to his mom. At this point Jake doesn’t know if he can even text or call his mom, he doesn’t know what his dad would do- how angry he’d get with Jake. 

“I’m fine Gina, it’s nothing”. Shrugged Jake. 

“Boo you should know you can’t lie to me, I know you too well”. Gina said. Jake sighed, knowing he will have to tell Gina. He doesn’t know why he tried to lie to her, Gina knows Jake better than he knows himself most the time.

“Dad’s back. He’s with mom and he threatened me last night Gina. I’m fucking terrified, I-I don’t know what to do. I want to tell mom what happened, get her away from him but I’m too afraid of what he might do to me. I mean he already threatened me last night and I couldn’t fight back. I’ve beaten tougher perps than him and yet I froze up, I’m just a coward.” Jake cried, all the emotion he built up beginning to spill over as he confesses to Gina. 

“He threatened you? What did he do Jake”. Gina asked, her voice full of concern. 

“He grabbed me, pushed me against a wall and told me to keep out of there way and if I told anyone about what he did he’d kill me.”

“That son of a bitch, we can’t let him get away with this Jake. We have to tell someone. You can’t got though this again, it’s not fair. You shouldn’t have to suffer while that bastard is happy.” Exclaimed Gina. 

“What’s the point? Let’s face it there’s nothing I can do, I-I thought I was rid of him for good and now his back. And who knows what he’ll do if anyone finds out. There’s nothing I can do Gina.” Jake sighed defeatedly, sinking down too sit on the floor of the evidence room. 

“Oh Jake, we will think of something I promise you. That scum bag won’t get away with it this time. We’ll do this together.” Reassured Gina, pulling Jake into a much needed hug and holding him as he cried. People often presume Gina is selfish, bitchy, but once you get to know her- really know her- she is fiercely protective and will do anything to help the ones she loves and cares about. Jake is like a brother to her and should would do everything she can to help him though this. 

Eventually they went back, Jake unable to focus on his paperwork, just staring down at the page, words swirling on the page. He just wanted to go home, forget this was happening, forget all about his dad, push down the memories pushing up at the surface and threatening to spill over. The squad did wonder when Jake and Gina got back why there were so long, but they didn’t question it could be anything with those two seeing as they’ve been best friends for years. No-one did notice the shift in their moods, how Gina seemed less focused on her phone than usual, more distracted and how Jake did nothing but stare down at his paperwork rather than actually doing it. 

The rest of the day past uneventfully, the hours slowly ticking by, Gina- without invite- going to Jake’s after work. Not to talk, just to be there for him. She knew that Jake would not want to talk again after already opening up once. Jake didn’t do emotions, never really did, another thing his dad made him hide. According to Roger Peralta, if Jake showed how he was really feeling then people could find out, and Jake knew what his dad would do if anyone found out so he kept guarded, kept his emotions hidden this just carried on throughout the rest of his life- the only person he could ever open up to was Gina. 

It was a couple of weeks later that his dad turned up at the precinct demanding that Jake helped him. He claimed that he was being framed for a crime didn’t commit. Jake didn’t want to accept the case, he really didn’t- every part of his mind screaming at him to get away from his dad, but reluctantly he agreed thinking he could pass the case onto someone else at the precinct and feeling he had no choice but to except. He explained to his dad that he might not be able to do the case himself due to a conflict of interest- that didn’t work, it just made Roger angry and lash out, again, threatening him if he did not solve the case. Gina practically begged Jake to give the case to someone else, but he had no choice- he had to take the case and solve it. 

He worked late, staying in work longer that he should trying to find evidence, suspects new leads- anything to get this case solved and away from that monster. Eventually he found a lead, someone who lived close to Roger’s apartment in New York who hated him, then again who didn’t hate Roger Peralta. Despite it being late at night- well now early morning- he still went out to follow this new lead. 

He informed his dad of the new lead as he dad wanted an update whenever there was one and went to follow up on it. He arrived at the man’s apartment, stating he needed to ask him a few questions. It quickly became clear that he did not frame his dad. With no leads or evidence it looked likely to Jake that his dad did commit the crime and was just using Jake to try and get away with it. He left the apartment and walked back to his car sighing heavily, how the fuck was he going to explain this to his dad without him getting angry or violent? ‘I could tell him at the precinct’ Jake supposed so he couldn’t do anything to him there, not in front of a room of detectives. 

He exited the building when he saw his dad standing by his car. “W-what are you doing here dad?” Jake stammered out, heart beating rapidly. 

“I came to see how the case was going. I see you didn’t arrest him, what’s going on Jacob?” Roger said. Jake winced at his words, knowing that despite his dad’s seemingly calm tone he was beyond pissed off. 

“He erm- he had an alibi. It checked out, s-so I know it wasn’t him.” He explained, not looking up at his father. 

“So what happens now.” Roger said curtly, visibly losing his patience. 

“I-I will have to try and find a new lead, n-new evidence. But if I don’t then-” Jake cut off, not daring to finish. 

“Then what?” He shouted, making Jake jump and flinch away. 

“Y-you could go to jail.” Jake rushed out. “But I’ll keep working, I’ll try harder, and I will find something I promise dad, you just have to give me more time, it’s only been I few days.” Jake quickly added, hoping is dad would understand that he just needed more time, that was all. He wasn’t giving up on the case, he just needed longer to find a new lead.

“I am not going to jail because my son is a failure at his job”. Roger bellowed, grabbing a hold of Jake and pushing him into a near-by alley way. Jake fell to the floor, Roger beginning to hit, punch and kick him. Screaming that Jake was a disappointment, a failure, can’t do his job properly, that it was all his fault, that if he goes to jail, he will not hesitate to destroy him. Jake pleaded, cried out for his dad to stop making promises between broken sobs and laboured breathing that he would solve it, that he could. His dad wouldn’t listen, it seemed like he would never stop. Eventually he did but by that point Jake was unconscious. Roger Peralta simply walked away as if nothing happened. 

When Jake doesn’t turn into work the next morning the squad presumes, he is either late or following a lead on his dad’s case, so they don’t worry, other that Gina. When she sees that Jake isn’t there, she frantically texts and calls, getting no-where. She asks about the case Jake was working on, trying to find out where Jake might be, she gets nowhere, Terry telling here that it’s none of her business and she’s not a detective. She tries not to worry, hoping that her fears are wrong, and Jake is just following a lead. She keeps texting Jake and checking her messages every few seconds hoping Jake will get back to her. Nothing. It takes about an hour before her phone finally rings. 

“Jake thank God. Where are you?” Gina asks. She pauses, giving Jake time to answer.  
“Jake, are you there?” She says frantically, hearing Jake’s laboured breathing as he struggles to talk. 

“G-Gina.” He chokes out. “N-need you.” Jake slurs, struggling to form the words. Everything hurt- he needed to get to a hospital fast. 

“Where are you boo?”

“T-there’s an address on my desk. H-hurry, please.” The call cut off, Jake’s voice barely a whisper. Gina knew she had to get there fast. She got up quickly walking over to his desk. She got the address, running to the elevator and out of the precinct. Everyone looked around concerned why she would run out like that and by the look on her face. Pure worry and fear. They knew she had just been on the phone, but none of them paid attention, thinking it was the usual Gina gossip than none of them cared about. Could it be about Jake, they all saw her look at something on his desk, so was this about Jake? Surely, she would have said, they supposed seeing as he hadn’t been in work all day. 

She arrived in about five minutes, thankfully the traffic was fine, and she hadn’t been stopped for speeding. “Oh, Jake.” She whispered as she ran over to her broken best friend. “An ambulance is on its way, I called one just before I left. You’re gonna be fine Jake, I promise.” Reassured Gina. She assessed Jake’s injuries as best as she could. How the fuck could that sick bastard do this to his own son? Jake’s face was bruised, a cut on his head bleeding, a few of his ribs were broke- he must have bruises and cuts everywhere. Gina wanted to cry seeing Jake like this. He didn’t deserve this it isn’t fair. All Jake has ever done is try to help people and do what was right, Jake is the best person Gina knows (not that she would ever tell him that), it’s not right that Jake has to suffer like this whilst that monster is walking around free. He should be rotting in jail for the rest of his life. 

The ambulance got there quickly, Gina explaining that he had been badly beaten up and Jake had called her for help. Jake was unconscious by the time they got him to the hospital. The doctors at the hospital checked on him whilst Gina waited anxiously outside, terrified about what damage has been done to Jake. She cries, really cries. She feels this is her fault, for not telling anyone then or now about what Roger Peralta is really like, for not getting Jake to drop the case. She feels she has failed Jake. 

When Jake wakes up Gina is sat beside him, lightly holding his hand. 

“Hey boo, you scared me there for a second.” Gin says softly. 

“I-I’m okay Gina, or at least I will be thanks to you.” Says Jake, voice quiet. 

“The police wanna speak to you Jake, when you’re up to it. Please, please don’t lie- tell them that he did this because you can’t go on like this. He need to be locked up and as far away from you as possible.” Gina pleaded, eyes begging for Jake to admit what he had done and get rid of that scum forever. 

“But what if he gets away with it Gina? He’d probably kill me if I reported him and he got away with it.” He cried, so afraid of his own father. 

“He wouldn’t. The will be evidence of what he’s done. He can’t get away with it this time- he won’t. And I’ll be there with you Jake okay. We’re in this together Jakey.”

Jake sighed; Gina was right he couldn’t go on like this anymore, he had to tell the truth about him and finally get the justice he deserved. He agreed that when the police needed to speak to him that he’d tell them what Roger Peralta did. He’d finally get him sent down. He knew that the squad would inevitably find out so decided that he would tell them when he had left hospital- which would be in a couple of days as there was nothing the doctors could do for his broken ribs besides give him some medication and tell him to rest up for a couple of weeks. And the bruises would eventually go away- the memories wouldn’t but the physical cuts and bruises would. Gina would tell Holt before-hand as she would go the precinct later on to tell him that Jake would need time off and why. 

Gina waited until Jake fell asleep before heading back to the precinct. She was visibly shaken, and everyone could see she had been crying as she walked from the elevator to Holt’s office. She ignored their stares, entering Holt’s office and closing the door behind her. 

“Gina, are you alright?” Holt asked, seeing that Gina was visibly upset. He may appear to be a robot, but he could always tell when there was something bothering or hurting those close to him. 

“It’s Jake. He needs some time off.” Gina stated matter-of-factly. 

“I presume this is to do with his father’s case.” 

“Not exactly. Erm, Jake’s in hospital. He found a lead on Roger’s case and decided to speak to this guy. It turned out to be nothing. His dad followed him there and got angry that Jake hadn’t found anything yet, and he-he beat him. Jake has broken ribs and is bruised pretty much everywhere.” Gina explained, crying by the time she had finished explaining. 

“And his father did this?” Holt questioned incredulous. Showing rare emotion. Gina nodded, brushing the tears off her face. “It’s not the first time he’s hurt Jake. It happened often when we were little, happened until his dad left. He never told anyone, and I didn’t because he didn’t want me to. I should have done and maybe he wouldn’t be lying in a hospital bed now.” Gina said, tears falling freely; she never normally showed emotion in front of people, only really Jake. 

“You are not to blame here Gina, you did what Jake wanted- you were loyal to your friend which is admirable, especially in those circumstances.” Holt reassured. Gina tells Holt that Jake plans to tell the squad when he’s well enough. Holt promise Gina that he won’t say anything and promises Gina that he won’t tell the squad anything. 

Gina leaves Holt’s office, closing the door behind her. She heads to her desk to pick up her bag that she left behind earlier. 

“Hey Gina, you okay?” Charles asked as she collected her things.  
“We’re all worried about you; you ran out earlier and seem upset. Is there anything wrong?”

“I’m fine Charles, just some family stuff.” Gina said, deliberately fobbing Charles off. Charles thought this was weird, normally if anything had happened Gina would tell everyone, literally everyone. He chose not to pry, knowing that it must be something serious and she would probably say eventually. 

Gina makes her way back to the hospital and doesn’t leave once until Jake is discharged two days later, the hospital saying that there is nothing they can do other that offer pain medication and recommend that Jake sticks to paper-work until he is fully healed- if he bothers going back into work for a while.

The day after, Jake and Gina go back to the precinct. Gina supporting Jake every step of the way, metaphorically and physically as Jake struggles to walk with his several broken ribs. Everyone goes silent when they see Jake, save the gasps as they see his injuries. 

“Jake, what the hell happened?” Amy breathed out, her eyes wide in shock. 

Before Jake could answer, Holt called for a meeting in the break room. ‘This is it’ Jake thought. He took a deep breath before following everyone in. Gina sat by his side; hand placed reassuringly on his leg as if to remind him that she was there for him. 

“I have something to tell you guys.” Jake began. “As you’ve probably noticed, I’ve not been in work for a few days because I’ve been beaten up. I have a few broken ribs, a lot of bruises and cuts, as you can see. I was working my dad’s case when this happened and-“ Jake continued before cutting himself off. This was really, really difficult for him. Gina took his hand and squeezed it gently in reassurance. 

“Did a perp do this to you?” Amy asked softly. 

Jake shook his head. “It was my dad. He got angry that I had no leads and hadn’t solved the case yet.” Said Jake, his voice a whisper and tears threatening to fall. 

Everyone was silent, at a loss of what to say. 

“There’s more. Erm- this isn’t the first time. When I was younger my dad used to abuse me, right up until the day I left. No-one other than Gina knew. I didn’t tell anyone and I asked Gina not to tell anyone either. God, without Gina I could not have got through this. I wanted to tell you now because you’ll find out anyway. I’ve finally reported him to the police.”

“Jake I am so sorry this happened to you.” Charles said. 

“We’re all here for you though Jake, whatever you need.” Terry offered, everyone nodding in agreement. They couldn’t believe what they were hearing, yes, they knew that something happened between Jake and is dad because Jake never spoke about him and when asked he always tensed up and changed the subject quickly- none of them could ever have guessed this. 

“Gina, why did you never say anything?” Amy asked, she wasn’t trying to blame Gina, or have a go at her but her tone still had an accusatory edge. 

“I always wanted to it was Jake who didn’t want anyone to know so I never said. I didn’t want to betray him.” Gina explained. She had always regretted not telling everyone, despite Jake being thankful that she didn’t. Now she feels even more remorse, blaming herself for what happened to Jake the other day. She thinks that if she had said all those years ago his dad wouldn’t have come back and this wouldn’t have happened, Jake wouldn’t be living in fear of Roger and he wouldn’t be hurt the way he was now. 

Jake smiled softly at Gina, “I couldn’t have coped without Gina, she’s been my rock for years now. I’ll always be grateful to you Gina.” He said softly. He could never thank Gina enough or repay her for all she has done. 

He felt better, having told the squad. He was worried that they wouldn’t believe him, or they’d judge him or think differently about him. They were all incredibly supportive. All that was left now was to tell his mom. He was dreading doing this, what if she didn’t believe him, thought he was just saying this to get rid of his dad. Gina offered to go with him, but he thought it would be best if it was just him and him mom. 

He got to his mom’s house at around two in the afternoon, hesitantly knocking on the door. 

“Hello Jacob, I think you better come in- we need to talk.” His mom said. The usual happiness in her voice gone. 

“Can you explain to me why your father has been arrested? He told me that you have accused him of hurting you, but it’s not true. He said that it was a suspect in his case and you’ve just said it was him to get him out of our lives again- which is what you wanted, you said so yourself.” She didn’t believe him. Jake was in disbelief at what he was hearing. He had manipulated him mom into thinking he was lying. 

“He’s lying mom I promise you. The reason I wanted him gone is because this isn’t the first time this has happened. It happened often when I was a kid. I never said anything because I though it would hurt you too much. Gina was the only one who knew any of this. The other day, he was angry- I had found a suspect but it was a dead end. I-I t-told him that I had no other leads- he was so angry that he did this. Please believe me mom, he’s the one lying to you I swear.” 

“W-what do you mean that it happened as a kid?” She asked cautiously. 

“He physically abused me mom, until the day he left. Any time you saw bruises I lied, said I fell or a walked into something because I was too afraid to say anything.” He sniffled, wiping away the few stray tears that had fallen. He was praying that his mom would believe him, he couldn’t lose her. 

“So why not tell me when he came back, and why distance yourself from me these past few weeks?” She asked, she didn’t sound angry, just upset- more with the situation than Jake. 

“I didn’t know if I was allowed to see you, if he would let me. And I was still scared- he threatened me on my birthday when he came after me, so I never said. Gina wanted me to, but I couldn’t. I only did because Gina convinced me to, I wouldn’t have done had she not persuaded me.” Confessed Jake. 

“What was different this time?”

“I realised I couldn’t live like that, in constant fear of him and what else he might do to me. There was more evidence of what he’d done so I knew he would be sent down, that I’d finally be free of him.”

“But why would he lie Jake, what would he get out of it?” She questions- she was torn, she knew Jake wouldn’t lie about something like this but at the same time she didn’t want to believe that Roger Peralta, the man who used to be her husband- the man that she loves- could do this. 

“He’s trying to get away with this and he knows if you’re on his side it will look better for him in court. He’s lying to get away with this.” Jake stated, imploring his mom to believe him. 

She didn’t say anything, pausing to take in the whole situation- it was hard to process. 

“If you don’t believe me just say and I’ll leave you alone from now on”. Jake huffed, voice cracking as tears began to fall again. His hated the thought of losing his mom but if she wasn’t going to support or believe him, he had no choice but to walk away. He got up to leave, getting almost out of the room when his mom called after him. 

“I believe you Jake, it was just a lot to take in. I promise you that I will be there for you every step of the way from now on. Whatever you need, if you need someone to talk to, a shoulder to cry on I will be there from now on, I always will be. And I am so, so sorry I let you down. I should never have doubted you and I should have been there before, or noticed something. I don’t expect you to forgive me.” Karen cried. 

“You haven’t let me down, you weren’t to know before. I kept it hidden and made Gina stay quiet. Please don’t feel guilty for that.” Jake said as he sat back down, taking hold of his moms hand as they both needed the comfort. 

“But I’m your mother, I should have seen you were hurting- and I should never have doubted you in the first place.”

“I’m not gonna say it didn’t hurt that you didn’t believe me, because it really did, but he’s a manipulator and a liar- it’s just what he does so I-I don’t blame you.”

“I love you Jacob”. She said, gently pulling Jake into a hug, being careful not to hurt his ribs. 

“I love you too mom.” Jake replied. He stayed for a while longer, not wanting to leave him mom yet after everything that she had just found out. They both needed each other. 

“How did it go boo?” Gina asked when Jake arrived at the precinct the next day. 

“She didn’t believe me at first, but I explained it and she promises to be there for me. I think she was just in shock and didn’t want to believe that he could do that. I still think she needs time to fully get her head around it.” He explained. 

“I can speak to her as well if you want me to.” Offered Gina. It might help if she heard it from Gina’s perspective what happened. 

“I don’t know Gina.” Jake sighed. “I just want this to be over, to be able to put him and this whole situation behind me.”

“It’ll all be over soon Jake, I promise.” Says Gina softly. Jake gave her a sad smile before going to his desk to work for the day- only paperwork until he had fully healed, physically anyway. 

The trial came around, his dad still protesting his innocence and calling Jake a liar. He was sentenced and a restraining order granted. He couldn’t go near Jake again- even when he got out he would be safe. To say that Jake was relieved was an understatement. He cried in Gina’s arms after they announced the sentence. He had finally got the justice he deserved and could finally move on. He knew it wouldn’t happen quickly, healing took time, but as long as he had his family and friends around him he could be okay one day.

**Author's Note:**

> I still cannot do titles. 
> 
> My first b99 fic, hope you enjoyed reading.


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